


Warmth

by MysticAssassin



Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
Genre: Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 12:14:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15509649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MysticAssassin/pseuds/MysticAssassin
Summary: Natsume finds himself waiting out a blizzard with the help of Natori to keep him warm.





	Warmth

**Author's Note:**

> I recently got a friend of mine into the Natsume Yuujinchou series. So we've been talking about it a lot, and I've been having the urge to write something for it. Thus this was created.
> 
> Hope you enjoy~

It always happened. Because he could see into a world that others could not, should not, he always ended up in the same situation. The _ayakashi_ always sought him out. Sometimes, they were innocent in their calling- peacefully wanting their names returned- or wanting to meet the legendary Natsume Reiko, meeting her grandson instead. Other times, more frequently than he liked, the spirits that sought him out wanted nothing but trouble. Whether it was simply to distress the human unfortunate enough to see them, or some wrathful being wanting the Book of Friends as their own, and devouring its holder out of vengeance.

Natsume barely enjoyed the spirits popping out of nowhere, sometimes literally, to meet him. He enjoyed being chased much less.

His heart hammered erratically within his chest. Startled cries, verging on screams ripped from his mouth whenever the giant bird like creature tried to grab him. Its vulture like beak snapping too close to his delicate limbs whenever it got the chance.

It was a cold afternoon in the second month of the year. The winter had started late, and chose to make up for its tardy. Large, feathery clumps of white powder fell from the sky, gathering where it landed in weighty mounds of snow. The speed in which it fell created an opaque curtain that hindered Natsume’s vision. He ran wherever his feet took him, hoping that it only led him to safety. He had been running longer than he could remember. The snow creating an illusion akin to darkness, and he lost all track of time. The sky was a dismal gray, stormy dark blotches where the tree branches overhead stood thick.

Natsume’s right foot sank into a pillow of snow, careening him belly first into the bed of snow at the same moment the _ayakashi’s_ beak snapped at the spot where his head had been previously. The action so strong and powerful he heard it and felt the resulting breeze on his clothes. He tried to right himself, his bare hands sinking into the white around him- there was no firm grip to be found. The cold seeped into the pads of his fingers, he could feel it beneath his nails. His stockinged feet- bare of shoes in the hasty retreat from his room- went numb. The adrenaline in his veins the only thing keeping him moving.

The vulture spirit flew at him once more. Beak first. He would be impaled if his side-roll had happened even a second later. The _ayakashi_ crashed into the snow, frustration mounting after missing its intended. Its eyes, one the size of Natsume’s head, snapped open and its hard gaze fell upon him. It would be unfair to expect anything less than the startled scream that escaped the boy. His fear giving him strength, his instinct sending one tightened fist into the creature’s eye. Its scream was piercing. The snow upon the Earth unsettled. The solitude of the dead forest momentarily opening up with the gust from powerful wings. It was angry. It was that knowledge that finally helped Natsume back onto stiff legs.

“Sensei!” He called desperately for his absent bodyguard. He could not tell if the not-quite cat creature had left the Fujiwara’s residence alongside him in his haste. But he knew his bodyguard had been present. He hoped that he would catch up soon. “Sensei!!” 

The _ayakashi_ seemed more likely to catch him before his live-in did. “You’ll pay filthy child of man!” Its words were coloured in rage. And Natsume toyed with the idea that this would be his end. Stranded in a forest, alone, caught by the spirits he was gifted to see. His heart ached with some remnants of a lonely past, and cried out over the trouble he would cause the wonderful people that had helped him make his future.

All he could do was run.

“Natsume!” The high pitched sing song of Nyanko-sensei’s _manekineko_ form rang out over the deserted forest of snow. The pitter patter of tiny feet under a weighty body silent with the cushion provided. A large gush of wind bellowed through the area, trees shook and snow clouds dispersed, replaced by the magnificent form of Madara. Thick layers of fur only a tinge darker than the white all around rustled as his deep bellow growled out. The greater spirit rushed headlong into the vulture, barreling into its side and sending it hurling away from its human target.

Madara’s presence knocked Natsume off his feet in the boy’s relieved misstep. He had no idea where he had been going. The cliff he found himself thrown over sloped a bit, catching him on a few tumbles. He saw Madara and the vulture _ayakashi_ in a kaleidoscopic haze. The sigil on Madara’s forehead lit, casting the immediate surrounding area in a brilliant, warm blue hue as the two creatures danced around each other in a blur.

The cliff reached the end of its slope, leaving nothing but air. The drop left Natsume in a free fall. The wind whipped around his body- the harsh, cold bite painful. And as he fell, his scream rose- carried into the wind until his vision grew as dark as the sky.

**_________________________**

Natori did not expect the sudden shift in weather pattern. The very sky seemed ready to break under the weight of the snow falling. It only seemed to grow worse as time wore on. The frigid cold mingled harshly with the warmth of his breath causing the fog to obscure his glasses. He pulled them off, quickly deeming them useless. He would quickly have to find shelter if he did not want to succumb to the elements.

“Perhaps you should scout ahead for shelter, Hiiragi.” His horn-masked _shiki_ glided ahead of him, thoroughly unaffected by the cold. Her periodic glances at him, he knew, were to ensure his safety. To make certain he could still follow behind on his own. His stubbornness and inability to fully trust in the _ayakashi_ the way he knew a certain flaxen haired youth did, made him pull his exorcist robes tighter around himself. A stray thought of if his current client hoped the storm would do away with him so he would not have to pay his dues crossed his mind. The same thought made him toy with the idea of doubling the cost.

In the next moment, he caught himself before he could bump into his assistant. Hiiragi's steps halted as her gaze was drawn to somewhere in the distance. “What is it?” Natori questioned. His own eyes trying to see what the spirit before him could. His fingers brushed over the glasses in his pocket before dropping back to his side. He could barely see a foot in front of him- he doubted the glasses would help with one thing or the other. “Do you see something?” He tried again, yielding the same response.

Natori sighed, moving in the direction that his assistant had peered in. At the very least, moving once more encouraged the blood to flow within his veins. He barely passed her when she finally spoke. “There might be something up ahead.”

That was the extent of her elaboration. But it was enough to hasten his footsteps to see what she did. Hiiragi, herself, bounded ahead to the “something’s” location.

“Master!” There was no real explanation needed. The heightened pitch of Hiiragi’s voice set something on edge within him. His stomach constricted in worry before his thoughts could align. “It’s Natsume!” And he was running the rest of the way. His feet hardly touched the ground before it was in the air again, hurling him forward- even the Earth’s wintery grasp could not hold him back. When he caught up he saw Natsume’s body, held limp in Hiiragi’s arms.

He didn’t ask as he had to check for himself. His cold fingers still held more warmth than Natsume’s unconscious body. “We have to get him someplace warm.”

His _shiki_ looked down at the floor in a way that made him do so as well. Natsume’s customary canvas bag lay there, almost buried in the embrace of the snow- as he could only imagine had been the fate of Natsume himself until Hiiragi had become his saviour.

Natori eyed the bag as if it was a hateful spirit that he would soon exorcise. Natsume carried that bag everywhere he went. It was less to do with sentimentally for the bag itself, and everything to do with what lay hidden inside.

The Book of Friends. A powerful, and forbidden art of magic that bound numerous _ayakashi_ to it. Whether it was that they wanted their names back, or wanted the power for their own selfish vices, Natori cared not. Despite all his exorcist training- what he was most concerned about was the boy who shouldered the burden. The boy who put his life in danger every moment of every day. The boy who cared more about others than he did himself. He regarded humans and spirits equally. No matter how many tried to harm him, he always bounced back and trusted.

Natori could not understand it. It was something he still tried to comprehend in the boy. But he knew- it was what made Natsume, Natsume. And he would make sure to protect the boy in any way he could.

Natori’s grip on the strap of the bag tightened. He could destroy it. Free Natsume from the binds that held him also, as if his own name was held within the pages. Natori could tell an inquisitive Natsume later that the book wasn't retrieved. That only Natsume had lain there, in need of rescuing. Natori could save him right then and there.

“Master.” Hiiragi’s monotone drew Natori out of his reverie.

“Let's find somewhere, quickly.”

 **_____________**  

Natsume felt consciousness slowly return to him. The weight of his situation returned much faster and his eyes snapped open as his body bolted upright.

“Ah!” He collided with something and heard a pained groan. When he turned to look, he was greeted with the sight of Natori rubbing his reddening forehead.

“Natori- _san_?”

Upon hearing his voice, Natori stilled, nursing his bruise to look at Natsume. “Ah, to be young. You're as lively as ever, Natsume.” He had one of his camera ready smiles that came like second nature. Natsume, ever immune, scowled in reply.

“You're not much older than I am.” His voice simmered in annoyance. But his gaze settled on the red spot now on Natori’s otherwise unblemished face.

“Sorry.” His voice was low and Natori watched the boy- the affection he held for him swelling inside him, warming his body.

Natori placed his hand on the boy's head, ruffling his soft locks. He watched as the boy looked away, cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment.

It was then that Natsume noticed the deep brown kimono jacket spread over his body. It looked familiar. He looked up in his recollection and a scream promptly left him. His throat feeling dry and raw from a combination of screams and the cold. He startled back, his back colliding into Natori. And Natori held him, keeping him steady.

“You seem to be feeling much better.” Hiiragi spoke beside him after scaring him in her sudden appearance in front of him.

“Hiiragi. You know how easily Natsume gets frightened.”

“I'll be cautious next time.”

Natsume frowned over the exchange. Natori had clearly been teasing him. And Hiiragi- though her exterior hardly ever changed- did so as well.

Natsume eyed the two with a huff and narrowed eyes. He began to move away from his older companion when Natori’s hands held him, keeping him in place.

“Wait, don't pull away...not yet.”

Natsume was ready to reprimand the actor for trying to use his cheesy lines on him- further teasing him. But when he looked in his eyes, they were soft and tender. Natsume slumped against him, his cheeks once again tinged with colour.

Hiiragi left them to their own, disappearing to some far corner of what Natsume now recognised as an abandoned shrine. It was in his inspection that he saw his satchel bag an arms reach away. His heart leapt as a wave of anxiety overtook him. He hadn't thought of the bag upon waking. He nearly dove for it in his hurry to check its contents.

He missed the forlorn smile that marred Natori’s features.

“Your book is still in there. The Book of Friends, was it?” Natori spoke as if he needed confirmation. As if he hadn't thought of numerous ways to rid the thing. Arguments he could raise to Natsume so he would _want_ to rid himself of it.

Natsume peeked at him over his shoulder. His fingers already brushed the cover of his grandmother’s memento, easing his anxiety to the recesses of his subconscious.

“I- sorry. I didn't mean to doubt you.” He truly hadn't. Natsume had been more concerned over whether some stray _ayakashi_ had managed to take the book. Or even if the vulture spirit had succeeded in its quest for power.

“Maybe you should….” Natori’s voice was low. He could see Hiiragi watch them from a corner- possibly concerned over his shift in demeanour.

Natsume turned to him after putting the book back into the bag. “What?”

“You need to warm up Natsume. I'll do my best to help.” Natori’s smile slipped into place. The very air around him seemed to glimmer.

“Please cut it out, Natori- _san.”_

Natori chuckled good-naturedly. “One day even you will fall for my charm, Natsume.” The glimmer intensified. Natsume sighed.

A shiver ran through Natsume. He had practically tossed off Hiiragi’s outer kimono fashioned blanket in his haste for his belongings. Uncovered, he could feel the cold more intimately. It seeped into his skin, and chilled his bones.

Natori shrugged his outer layer off and held it up as a gesture for Natsume to join him.

“Let’s share my coat since you're so cold.”

“I'm fine. I have Hiiragi’s.” Natsume gathered the _shiki’s_ robes about him.

“But two is certainly better than one. Then we can also share body heat.”

Natsume would blame the flush in his cheeks on the cold. He was constantly surprised, and slightly unnerved that Natori could say such things without hesitancy. But he was right. Even with Hiiragi’s robe, he still felt the winter chill.

He looked at Hiiragi. “Aren't you cold?”

“ _Ayakashi_ are not as fragile as humans.”

Hiiragi was as blunt as ever. “Yes, but-”

“Natsume.” Natori called to gain his attention. “It's okay to accept help every once in a while.” He knew it was something the boy struggled with.

Natsume didn't bother to respond. And finally settled himself beside Natori. He was right, the two robes and the warmth of their combined body heat began to warm Natsume to his core. With it also came a wave of tiredness. Exhaustion of the night’s events hit him almost instantly. 

Without much prompting, Natsume’s head lolled and fell onto Natori’s shoulder.

The tender gaze returned to Natori’s carnelian coloured eyes as he watched the boy beside him drift to sleep. He knew it was a sign of trust. Because how could one constantly on the run let their guard down so easily among others? 

“Sleep well, Natsume.” Natori whispered.

**_________**

Natsume stirred into consciousness. An overwhelming feeling of security willed him back to sleep. But he took in his surroundings, Natori asleep at his side, the robes sagging off of his shoulder. He fixed it to the encore of the man’s content sigh. 

Natsume looked around them both, seeing the mass of whitish fur confining them in warmth that would last through the morrow. Madara’s eyes closed where he lay. His body filling the interior of the shrine. Natsume even noticed Hiiragi had moved closer. She sat close to Natori’s side. He could not tell if she were awake or asleep in her stillness. But he barely had time to wonder as sensei’s warmth pulled him back under. 

A small smile eased onto his lips as his fingers ran through the fur near Madara’s snout. The fantastical beast expelled a puff of air, rustling Natsume’s hair gently. 

And he let his eyes close. Falling asleep once more- safe and secure.

 

**Author's Note:**

> There really isn't enough Natori Natsume fan stuff around.


End file.
